"This place is like the Murkwood back on Orsterra." Ace said.
"I hear that. The Woodlands were pretty dark and closed like this as well." Hope said.
"Hmm...I'm seeing some tracks but it looks like these are really old." Aura said, looking to the ground. "And it looks like it came from...there." she said, seeing a large ship ahead.
"A smuggler's ship…" Tigre said.
"Judging from its state, it must've been here for a long time." Shanoa said.
"Yes...though...I don't think it was parked here." Tigre said, pointing out the large hole in the side of it.
"What the heck? Where did that hole come from?" David asked.
"Normally, when transporting dangerous beasts across worlds, smugglers are to tranquilize them to avoid any complications. But it looks like one of the beasts wasn't sedated enough and attacked, causing it to crash here." Tigre said.
"And that hole… You're saying that creature also busted itself out?" Mayumi asked.
"Yes...but...I think the hole was made before the ship crashed." Tigre said. "Hmm...you know, there should be a registry on board. Maybe we'll be able to find out what they were transporting."
"Okay. Sounds good." Agito said. "I have a really bad feeling about this."
"Well, if the creature they were transporting was strong enough to create this hole while in midair, and is probably still alive, this creature is not like any ordinary monster." Cheetah said.
"Yeah, watch yourselves everyone." Stahn said.
The group headed inside the ship to inspect the cargo. A number of the cages were broken open.
"I kind of expected this. The creatures were not being sedated frequently. It's safe to assume all of the crew that was on this ship are dead." Tigre said.
"How do you know so much about this kind of stuff, Tigre? Were you...born here or something?" Francisca asked.
"You seem to forget, before I joined you all, I was in charge of smuggling for Harlequin." Tigre said.
"That...was never mentioned I think. I thought Slav was in charge of that." Sectonia said.
"He was in charge of the slaves. I just smuggled them along with various weapons and products across multiple borders." Tigre said.
"It must've been hard to take orders from a madman like that." Hope said.
"It wasn't that bad to be honest. Good pay, steady job...you had to do what you could to survive. It's the way nature intends." Tigre said before finding a clipboard. "Ah...here's the registry." he said, picking it up. "Hmm...looks like the ship was coming from the Beast Universe, just as I thought."
"Beast Universe? This could be anything if that's the case." Sachiko said.
"Most likely something very, very hostile." Zacian said.
"My guess is it could be either one of three things: 1. A really strong and territorial Pokémon. 2. A Dangerous beast from any of the worlds of Monster Hunter. Or 3. A wild and out of control dangerous Digimon." Hope said.
"It wouldn't have been a Pokémon. They would have caught it in a Pokéball. Digimon would easily be stored inside of a drive. Though...your second guess may have merit. Monsters from those worlds have parts that go for a very large amount. Though if that is true...judging from the hole and the village...that would mean the monster they captured is one thing...an Elder Dragon." Tigre said.
"Elder Dragon?" Gemini asked. "Oh yeah. There was one in Valkanda during the whole Ultron Sigma thing. Of course, Ultron Sigma corrupted it with the Sigma Virus and it went crazy, but…"
"Is it the same one that was in Valkanda, you think? Dah'ren Moran? Or are there other types of Elder Dragons?"
"Elder Dragon is a classification for monsters of unimaginable destructive power. Wherever they roam, entire ecosystems tend to change in the path of their destruction." Tigre said.
"Like a Kaiju?" Ultra asked.
"No...much more dangerous. I hunted one with a small party once. It seemed like an easy job. It was anything but. When the dust settled, we managed to slay it...but not before losing at least 23 members from our 30 member hunting team." Tigre said.
"That's a small party?" David asked.
"Well, compared to the battalions we have." Sojiro said.
"And unfortunately, there are too many Elder Dragon species to list. And they come in many distinct forms and shapes as well." Cheetah said.
"So… we don't even know what it is we're even going after?" Scorpia asked. "There's gotta be a name or something to this thing they were carrying at least."
"Even if there was, we wouldn't be able to subdue them with traps." Cheetah said.
"The best we can do is follow this beast's trail and track it down until we eventually find it. And hopefully bring it down." Noelle said.
"Hmm...maybe I can…" Tigre said before smelling something. "This odor is foul. It's like poison. And it's...get down!" Tigre called out as they ducked down as a long tongue lashed out before retracting to a large chameleon like beast.
"What the heck is that?" Catra asked.
"A Pukei-pukei. A type of wyvern. It must have stayed on board to make the ship its territory." Tigre said.
"That thing is just creepy." Al shuddered.
The Pukei-pukei ran past them and jumped onto one of the cages before breathing in as it started spitting out nuts at them.
"Don't touch that ammo. It's been soaking in the monster's poison." Tigre warned seeing some of the cage bars eroding from just being grazed.
"Oh Em Jehoshaphat!" Mari said.
"Scanning complete. It's weak to lightning." Miu said.
"If that's the case...Thunderbolt!" Pikachu said, launching a thunderbolt at the monster, causing it to howl in pain. It looked in shock as it headed for the corridor.
"Is it trying to run?" Ajna asked.
"It's a behavioral instinct. It bullies weaker monsters but at the first sign of danger, its instinct is to turn and run." Tigre said.
"But maybe we can use that to our advantage." Scott said.
"You mean you intend to try and trap it?" Tigre asked.
"It's worth a shot." Scott said.
"Let's at least try and lead it the way we want." Nami said. "Thunder Breed Tempo!" she said calling down a thunderbolt, scaring the monster in another direction.
"(I won't let you get away!)" Harpuia said, causing lightning to strike down and cut off another one of the monster's possible escape routes.
"Let's trap this beastie!" Noir said webbing the Pukei-Pukei up, binding it so it couldn't escape. And to make sure it didn't go anywhere, Sp/dr slammed down on it, pinning it down.
"Target captured!" Peni confirmed from inside her mech.
Pukei-pukei looked around in panic before raising its tail as it jabbed at Peni inside the mech.
"Come… Caesar!" Scott called out. This caused Caesar to use Ziodyne on the Wyvern.
The monster let out a final roar before it laid there on the ground dead.
"Well...it looks like that finished it off." Tigre said as he pulled out a knife.
"What are you doing?" Jexi asked.
"What I have learned from hunting is never to let any part of the animal go to waste. Especially monsters." Tigre said.
"Using its hide to make new equipment?" Cheetah asked.
"That is one of them. But this isn't a skinning." Tigre said as he started carving off pieces of the beast from its tail to its wings. Even slicing off a sac from its head. "Even its poison sac could have good use."
"*Faints*" Mari said as she collapsed on her back.
"Speaking of poison, are you good, Peni?" Hope asked.
"I think so. I'm pretty sure its tail didn't reach me. Any closer to me and I would've melted inside Sp/dr." Peni said climbing out. "Lucky I've got a smaller body. I didn't realize its tail was poisonous too."
Soon the monster was carved up as they left the ship.
"From the number of cages, counting our slain quarry, there were possibly 3, maybe 4 monsters being transported." Tigre said.
"Which means there are still more of them out there. We will need to be cautious if we are to subdue these beasts and restore balance." Sojiro said.
"And one of them is an Elder Dragon." Tigre said. "Odds are, the fight ahead will not be easy."
"But it's nothing new. Plus, we have some esteemed hunters with us. We've got this." David said.
"David's right. There's no need to be afraid of these things since we've dealt with plenty of other fierce beasts lots of times." Hope said.
"Um… Technically some of us haven't." Rhatla said.
"I think what the boy really meant is that we have people like Tigre and Barbara that are exceptional hunters, plus we have means of exploiting the beasts' weaknesses." Agursu said.
"Thank you, Lizard siblings." David said.
"Trust me when I say this...the last thing you want to do is underestimate an Elder Dragon." Tigre said.
In a far away part of the forest, in the darkness, flashes could be seen with a large beast residing inside as it looked out.